


Coz That Would Be Enough

by MeredithBrody



Series: NaNoWriMo [3]
Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: F/M, Season 2 tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-11
Updated: 2013-11-11
Packaged: 2018-01-01 04:12:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1040203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MeredithBrody/pseuds/MeredithBrody
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Veronica searches out an old friend before he leaves on a dangerous mission.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Coz That Would Be Enough

**Author's Note:**

> This is written for the lovely Lynn. I love you muchly, my darling. I hope this is enough!

Veronica Fletcher knew exactly where she was going and exactly who she was looking for. It didn't matter to her right now that it was probably inappropriate for her to turn up uninvited, but she didn't much care, not right now at least. There was the moment when someone told you bad news where you just wanted to not believe it, to pretend it wasn't happening.

This was definitely one of those times. She'd sat through the late lunch with Erika and listened to the gossip she'd picked up, at least she said it was gossip, but whether Veronica believed her or not was another matter. The obvious answer, for her, had been to find her own contact on _Enterprise_. She knew that most of the information would come from Erika, she was a high rank and had been involved with the Captain for years,

Her connection was maybe more tenuous. Like most in Starfleet, she knew other officers on other ships. She even had her own "ex" aboard _Enterprise_. Though they'd only been together a couple of months, and it had been many years earlier, but they'd stayed friends and exchanged letters from time to time.

She was worried about him, and just knowing if he was going was surely going to change her opinion on the mission. Yes Captain Archer was a friend, in a way, but they were friends because they both cared about Erika. Malcolm was her friend, someone she had loved, still loved in a way. So maybe she had taken a less than honourable route to find him, but she did it.  

She searched through the small cafe and sure enough, there he was. She let out a silent prayer to the information tree that was comprised of the communications staff of Starfleet. They were always right. He didn't even look up as she approached, but she was certain he knew she was there. He wasn't as clueless as he sometimes portrayed himself. He was always aware. Knowing that, she didn't feel the need for pleasantries. "Is it true. You're going searching for the Xindi?"

"I always liked that about you, Veronica. So direct." He shook his head and motioned to the seat opposite him. He didn't seem as surprised to see her as she'd expected. He'd probably been tipped off by Hoshi, but he hadn't left, that surely said something. As if sense what she was thinking he looked up to her with a questioning gaze. "How did you find me?"

"Erika spoke to Jack who knows Hoshi." That was as far as explaining she was going to do, because she wanted to keep the focus on her question, she needed the answer. It wasn't that she didn't know Enterprise was going, the entire fleet knew that, and that was why Erika had been almost impossible to calm the last few days, but she also knew she couldn't ask the personal question without going through the motions of asking after the ship. "Is it true?"

"Who the hell is Jack?" Malcolm asked, clearly confused. She was pretty sure Jack was confused when he was asked to contact Hoshi. She still wasn't going to let him question. She was as good at this as he was, and she was the one with a reason to be asking right now.

"One of the comm specialists from the NX programme. You didn't answer my question?" She pressed, and this time Malcolm sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees and sighing gently.

"Veronica." He muttered, and she knew he simultaneously wanted to tell her and wanted to stick to protocol. Maybe it was time to hit him with the fact she'd know soon enough anyway.

"Malcolm I'll find out from Erika anyway, she's a friend of Captain Archer." An understatement, Veronica was still hoping that reunion involved sex and the two of them realising they were stupid for trying to live without one another. But she wouldn't know that outcome for a while, and right now she was more concerned about her friend.

He stared at her a few minutes, then she saw a quick flash of resignation cross his face before he muttered again in the same tone he'd used before. "I shouldn't tell you."

She shook her head and reached a hand out, slipping it around one of his and squeezing. "We're the same rank. We've known each other since the thing at STC. Everyone already knows, I just want to know if _you_ are going." She pressed that, because this seemed like the moment she needed to be honest, where she needed to show that it was him she was worried about, not just _Enterprise_. Though it was hard to not be worried about everyone on the ship with where they were going.

Malcolm looked down at their hands then threaded his fingers through hers, squeezing back just as hard as she had. After a few seconds he met her eyes again and shrugged lightly. "I can't leave my ship, Nic."

"You haven't called me that in a long time." She chuckled, thinking how long ago he had decided he was going to call her that, because everyone else called her Ron. All the good memories from the time they'd spent together in those early days were suddenly flooding back, and she remembered all the good bits. They'd been drawn together by their similarities. As they grew up a little they dated and decided that being friends was a better idea. Mostly because she came to accept that she preferred women. She still had a place in her heart for Malcolm, and she probably always would.

"What?" He asked after she stopped chuckling, looking genuinely confused.

"Nic. Only you and my mother ever called me that." She chuckled a little more, then she felt the enormity of the discussion fall on her again. "You're going then?"

"I need to go." Malcolm answered, squeezing her hand once more. She took a deep breath and blinked a couple times, trying to stop herself getting overly emotional about the situation, especially when she had no real reason too. He rubbed his thumb along the back of her hand and just waited for her to speak again.

"I know what we had is well behind us, but you're still my friend, and I want you to be OK. So try to be safe, OK?" That was the important part, wasn’t it. Him trying to stay safe. All of them trying to stay safe and still save Earth at the same time.

"Try is all I can do."

She smiled, taking his word and stopping at that. She didn’t know what else to say, was there anything else for her to say? She thought a minute, then remembered one thing she could get Malcolm to promise. Even if it was part of his job, she wanted to say anyway. "Oh, and do me a favour, keep an eye on Captain Archer. I don't think Erika would be able to cope if he didn't make it back. They should never have broken up." She shook her head, and tried not start on the same rant she and AG had had the week he’d died. It was always going to amuse her that her last conversation with her friend had been about how to stop Jon and Erika from being total idiots.

Malcolm narrowed his eyes again, studying her then nodded. "Keeping the Captain safe is one thing I would do anyway, but I'll try harder, for you." He smiled with the last words, and she knew she’d actually done the right thing, even if it didn’t feel that way.

"Thanks. I'll see you soon, Malcolm. When you get home." She squeezed his hand again then stood up, knowing she needed to get out of there before one or the other of them said or did something they would regret in the heat of the moment. 


End file.
